Thanks, bro

NEWPORT — When Tim Smyczek was a kid, he always wanted to be like his older brother Alec. When Alec started taking tennis lessons, Tim did, too.

“My brother is four years older than me, and my mom played tennis in high school. So when my brother was about 7, he started taking a couple lessons, and I just kind of followed along,” Smyczek said. “I always wanted to be like him. I got really lucky to have a built-in practice partner.”

As it turned out, tennis didn’t lead to much for the older Smyczek, who now is a lawyer in Milwaukee. But thanks in large part to having an older brother to play against, Tim went pro. He said his brother doesn’t really play anymore, but Smyczek freely admits he wouldn’t be where he is had he not tagged along at those lessons more than 20 years ago.

“I think it was a lot more beneficial for me than for him, because I always had someone to practice against who was a lot better than me,” Smyczek said. “I owe a lot to him. I started playing some tournaments around the Midwest and had some good results, so I played some tournaments nationally and it kind of progressed from there.”

Smyczek, 25, turned pro in 2006 and is currently ranked 120th in the world — and 12th in the United States. Until Tuesday, he didn’t have too many notable wins to his name, but he picked up a big one in the first round of the Hall of Fame Tennis Championships.

Smyczek beat No. 1 seed Sam Querrey 6-4, 7-6 (8), the first time he’s beaten a top seed at an ATP World Tour event. He does, however, have two other wins over top-25 players.

“Last year, I had a pretty good win here, as well. I qualified and beat (No. 4 seed) Denis Istomin,” Smyczek said. “I knew I liked the courts. I like grass a lot.”

When Smyczek drew Querrey as a first-round opponent at the draw party on Saturday night, those gathered let out a collective groan as if to say, “Poor guy.”

“It was funny … when they pulled my name to play Sam, everybody kind of went, ‘Aw,’ like feeling bad for me,” Smyczek said. “I thought it was kind of funny. I knew it was not the greatest draw, but I’ve played Sam before and I played him pretty tight in Indian Wells last year. So I knew a little bit of what to expect, and thankfully wasn’t too nervous going out there.

“I was just hoping to go out there and make a match of it and, if I had any sort of chances, to take advantage of them. I was pleasantly surprised.”

Pleasantly or not, most who follow the Hall of Fame Championships likely were surprised to see Smyczek advance. By no means will this win over Querrey make Smyczek a household name, but perhaps a few people will learn to pronounce his last name — which is actually Smee-check. The native of Hales Corners, Wis., which is just outside Milwaukee, is of Polish descent and has heard innumerable interesting attempts at saying his last name.

“I can’t count ’em,” he said. “The thing is, it’s a lot easier than it looks, but you name it, I’ve heard it. Even letters that aren’t in my name somehow sneak their way in.”

There apparently are several acceptable pronunciations, though.

“I say Smee-check, but apparently the proper Polish way to say it is Smi-chick,” he said. “My dad has nine brothers and sisters, and there are about three of them that say Smy-zek. It’s interesting.”

Pursuing a pro tennis career in Wisconsin can be difficult, so as many players do, Smyczek headed for Florida.

“When I was 16 or 17, I started spending a lot of time in Tampa. My mom moved down with me full time when I was 18,” he said.

At 5-foot-9 and 145 pounds, Smyczek gives up bit of size to the larger players in this tournament, including Querrey, who is 6-6. But Smyczek had no trouble matching Querrey’s power, blasting groundstrokes and hitting serves in the 120-mph range.

“I spend a lot of time in the gym and I work pretty hard off the court. I think that has something to do with it,” Smyczek said. “When I’m playing well, I time the ball pretty well and I think that John (Isner) and Sam and those guys, when they hit the ball really big, they have an easier time of it. They have a little more easy power, and when I try to hit the ball big, it’s maybe a little more effort.

“You’ve got to make up for it somewhere when you’re my size, and so I make up for it with effort, I guess.”

There was no questioning Smyczek’s effort on Tuesday. One doesn’t beat a No. 1 seed without a pretty effortful performance.

“Tim played well,” Querrey said. “He hits the ball hard and low and flat, and that’s good out there.”

Out there, on the grass courts at the International Tennis Hall of Fame, Smyczek said his style of play can be successful, as evidenced by his first-round wins this year and last.

“I’m shorter and low to the ground. I think that helps to a certain extent, especially here, since the courts are a little bit soft and low-bouncing,” he said. “I think you just have to focus really hard on these courts, because you can get a bad bounce at any time and you have to be mentally tough to deal with it.”

Down the road, Smyczek again is interested in being like his brother. According to his profile on the ATP World Tour website, he wants pursue law when his tennis career ends.

But Smyczek has earned $132,962 in prize money so far this year, and he’ll add at least $7,475 to that after reaching the second round here. Another win, against Nicolas Mahut or Rhyne Williams, would be worth another $5,215.

Those are modest numbers for a professional athlete, but there’s no need to start applying to law schools just yet.

For updates during the tournament, follow The Daily News sports team on Twitter @SportsNDN.

Never miss a story

Choose the plan that's right for you.
Digital access or digital and print delivery.